Rubio reassures Taiwan of continued support amid China trade talks

Secretary of State Marco Rubio on Sunday reaffirmed long-standing U.S. support for Taiwan, stressing that the island will not be abandoned during trade talks with China.

Speaking to reporters while traveling between Israel and Qatar en route to join President Donald Trump in Asia, Rubio said Taiwan should not be concerned about the trade negotiations.

“I don’t think you’re going to see some trade deal where, if what people are worried about is we’re going to get some trade deal, or we’re going to get favorable treatment on trade in exchange for walking away from Taiwan,” Rubio said. “No one is contemplating that.”

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Chinese President Xi Jinping has renewed an effort to push the U.S. into changing its one-China policy that recognizes Taiwan as part of China while still maintaining relations with the island.

Beijing has asked the Trump administration to officially adopt language saying that it “opposes” independence for Taiwan, a change that would represent a key diplomatic win for China, as Washington’s current position is that it “does not support” independence.

Taiwan is a significant issue in China’s relationship with the U.S., with a strained relationship over other issues such as trade, technology transfers and human rights.

The U.S. is Taiwan’s biggest military backer, but Trump has floated the idea that the island should have to pay for security.

Trump declined to answer when asked about U.S. policy toward Taiwan while heading for Asia on Air Force One.

“I don’t want to talk about that now. I don’t want to create any complexity. The trip is already complex enough,” Trump told reporters.

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The U.S. president is scheduled to meet Xi next week while attending a regional summit in South Korea, the first meeting between the two leaders since Trump returned to the White House in January.

Trump’s trip to Asia will include stops in Malaysia, Japan and South Korea.

Reuters contributed to this report.